1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to self cleaning truck mirrors, and more particularly pertains to a new and improved self cleaning mirror which allows the mirror to be adjusted and cleaned from within the cab of the truck. Mirrors on large trucks are particularly vital during backing of the truck. In order to provide a proper rear view, the angle of the mirror must be adjusted as the angle of the trailer with respect to the tractor is altered. Further, such truck mirrors are prone to becoming contaminated by dirt and insects such that a proper view is not available. Frequently, these truck mirrors must be cleaned and adjusted during inclement weather or while operating the truck. In order to enable a truck mirror to be conveniently cleaned and adjusted without necessitating stopping of the truck or forcing the driver to leave the cab, the present invention provides a truck mirror having self contained mechanisms for dispensing washer fluid, reciprocating a wiper across the mirror, and for adjusting the angle of the mirror.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various types of self cleaning truck mirrors are known in the prior art. A typical example of such a self cleaning truck mirror is to be found in U.S. Pat. No. 2,913,754, which issued to C. Vander Zee on Nov. 24, 1959. This patent discloses a mirror having a housing containing a fluid or vacuum actuated motor. A conduit through the mirror support provides power to the motor. A pivotally mounted wiper traverses across the mirror. Due to the pivotal mounting, the wiper does not clean the entire surface of the mirror. U.S. Pat. No. 3,413,676, which issued to 0. Engel on May 19, 1967, discloses a rear view mirror provided with a pivotal wiper. A linkage connects the mirror wiper arm to the windshield wiper linkage of the vehicle. Due to the arcuate motion of the wiper across the face of the mirror, some surfaces of the mirror are not cleaned. U.S. Pat. No. 3,455,624, which issued to R. Godfrey on July 15, 1969, discloses a truck mirror which provides a fluid conduit to conduct washer fluid across the surface of a rear view mirror. An air deflector is utilized to deflect air across the face of the mirror and to entrain the washer fluid in the air stream. U.S. Pat. No. 3,685,087, which issued to M. Pittman on Aug. 22, 1972, discloses a truck mirror having a reciprocal wiper. An electric motor in conjunction with a chain and sprocket drive is utilized to traverse the wiper arm vertically across the face of the mirror. U.S. Pat. No. 3,866,258, which issued to F. De Graw on Feb. 18, 1975, discloses a wiper assembly for a side mounted rear view truck mirror which includes a wiper blade arranged for transverse linear movement across the mirror surface. A pair of spaced parallel transversely extending fluid power cylinders are mounted on the rear side of the mirror mounting frame and have their piston rods respectively connected to the wiper blade. U.S. Pat. No. 4,339,169, which issued to K. Addison on July 13, 1982, discloses a side mounted rear view truck mirror having a wiper assembly. The wiper arm is actuated for transverse reciprocal linear motion by an electric motor and an eccentric cam linkage. U.S. Pat. No. 4,466,712, which issued to A. Vitaloni on Aug. 21, 1984, discloses an external rear view mirror having an enclosed wiper actuation mechanism for traversing a wiper arm across the face of the mirror. A remotely actuatable mechanism for adjusting the angle of the mirror is also provided. A single reversible electric motor within the mirror housing in conjunction with remote actuatable clutches allows for alternative actuation of the wiper or the angle adjustment mechanism. This construction is disadvantageous in that concurrent operation of the wiper and angular adjustment mechanisms are precluded.
While the above mentioned devices are suited for their intended usage, none of these devices provide a side mounted rear view truck mirror having a self contained washer fluid tank having an externally visible sight glass. Additionally, none of the aforesaid self cleaning rear view truck mirrors provides a wiper actuated for reciprocal transverse linear movement by a carriage screw having crossing opposite hand helical threads. An additional feature of the present invention, not contemplated by the aforesaid prior art devices, is the provision of a washer fluid pump motor, a wiper actuation motor and an angle adjustment motor within the housing of a side mounted rear view mirror. Inasmuch as the art is relatively crowded with respect to these various types of self cleaning truck mirrors, it can be appreciated that there is a continuing need for and interest in improvements to such self cleaning truck mirrors, and in this respect, the present invention addresses this need and interest.